A quartet of juniors who are capable of earning All-North Coast Athletic Conference – and potentially beyond – individual accolades have The College of Wooster men's cross country team primed for a big jump within the conference and regional standings. As to how far of a jump the team will take? That will be determined by how high the Fighting Scots' fifth finisher is able to get. Veteran head coach Dennis Rice is excited for the opportunity his team has to climb back over the hump and enjoy the top-tier conference success it enjoyed several seasons ago, and that all boils down to the fifth through seventh runners.

"Cross country is the ultimate team sport," said Rice. "We have four juniors who all had excellent track and field seasons. They have all been developing like they are supposed to as a distance runner. They know what to expect within the structure we have in place here and are having super results because of it. This core group is going to set the tone. Where our fifth runner finishes will be a game changer for us."

Junior Will Callender's trust in Wooster's system has already paid dividends with the Scots' No. 1 earning all-region accolades in cross country last fall, and that carried over to NCAC Indoor Distance Athlete of the Year honors after winning the conference 3,000 meters with a school-record time of 8:40.60. Classmate Ben Nichols elevated his performance to all-conference placement at the 2022 NCAC meet and enjoyed success at the All-Ohio championships during indoor track and field season, while junior Drew Robertson broke through as an all-region steeplechaser after earning two All-NCAC and two All-Ohio honors during track and field season. Eric Johnson, who had collegiate-bests in all distance events he competed in as a sophomore, is the fourth key part of the junior quartet.

"Will is capable of challenging the top runners in the conference and region," summed up Rice. "He has that opportunity to take the next step and aim for competing at the national championships. We are excited to see how Will continues to develop and progress as a runner here at Wooster. Drew made such a breakthrough in track that I'm confident will carry over to cross country. Ben has done a really great job for us at the conference level and puts in the workload that is needed to be successful."

"Eric is starting to make that breakthrough," continued Rice. "He had a great regional meet in 2022 and things really started to fall into place at the end of the season. If he can make another big jump, we can have four right in the mix for all-conference."

Mitch Ecklund leads a senior class that is rounded out by Graham Harper, Connor Krucek, Bryson Simpson, and Ryan Tepperman. Rice is looking for this group to lead the charge when it comes to competing to be regulars within the program's top seven.

"Our seniors need to step up and take on the responsibility of being one of the five, six, or seven runners on this team," said Rice. "They have a good understanding of what is expected of us as coaches, especially when it comes to the championship meets. One of those guys need to be in there. How much we can close our gap from four to five is going to determine the level of team success."

Other juniors working hard and "getting more experience with training and competition," are Toby Burgess, Will Christopher, Cam Culton, Hayden Jacoby, Proto Protopapadakis, and Cam Ray, who joins the cross country team for the first time after helping the outdoor 4x400 to the program's first NCAC relay championship since 2000.

A sophomore class consisting of letterwinners Joe Ahmann, Spencer DeHart, Zane DeMercurio, and Jack Schuller, plus Gustav Bourdon, Charlie Cuttino, Jake George, Duncan Miller, Ethan Walling, and Luke Woodfill are looking to make their mark on the program after having a year to settle in.

"Our sophomores are still understanding the workload that is needed for success at the collegiate level and competing at championships," stated Rice. "This class has potential and is working towards more consistency with training and competition."

Six first-years round out the roster, a group Rice is looking to "get settled in at Wooster and learn to trust our system to build towards the future."

When it comes to the NCAC Championships, which take place October 28 at Denison University, Rice is "really excited about how we stack up" and noted, "regardless if it is Div. I, Div. II, or Div. III, conference championships are a huge event for all programs."

Wooster has three home meets this fall, starting with the season kickoff event on September 1 at 6 p.m. at L.C. Boles Memorial Golf Course. Denison visits on September 21 for the first leg of a yearlong series of dual meets with one each in cross country, indoor track and field, and outdoor track and field. The team tunes up for regionals, which are taking place at nearby Silver Creek Metro Park in Norton on Saturday, November 11, with the program's annual Twilight 5K Challenge on the newly-renovated Carl Munson Track on November 3.